


Discern

by ChildishSadism



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Blind Noctis, M/M, Molestation, Niflheim! Ignis, Noctis starts underage but gets older, Roleswap, implied rape
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-28
Updated: 2017-04-01
Packaged: 2018-09-20 12:13:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 22,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9490520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChildishSadism/pseuds/ChildishSadism
Summary: It is his duty to follow orders unquestionably, but he never thought he could find a reason to question them at all. When treason looks like the only answer he can find, Ignis isn't sure if he can push through with this. It is his pride that keeps him from falling into the same darkness as the people around him, and it is the burning feelings in his chest that reassure his decision.Anon-prompt <3





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Eeeeeeeyyyyyy! New fic and stuff, my guess is that it'll probably be like 4 chapters at most but who knows.
> 
> Original prompt was:  
> Another Igtis prompt(o)! Raised within Niflhiem, Ignis is Ardyn's butler and is put in charge of taking care of a captured prince Noctis. But, he hates how Ardyn treats Noctis. Eventually, Ignis decides to free Noctis and the two run away to Lucis together. (While impractical, I think it would be more interesting to have a blind!Iggy outsmart Ardyn. But it's up to you!) 
> 
> However I did change quite a few things, but I hope you guys enjoy still! Ignis is 22 at the beginning of this fic, and Noctis is 16, however that will change so don't panic and stuff. 
> 
> Sorry for my shitty mistakes and stuff!
> 
> tumblr: https://demnocts.tumblr.com/ and my obsession and thirst for Noctis has no limits lmao

A perfect soldier wasn't just someone with high combat skills. No, a perfect soldier required versatility. They needed to be able to adapt to different situations and to be able to react accordingly. It wasn't about who had the most muscles, of who could aim best. It was about who could live the longest without facing death even once. They needed to not just be intelligent but clever as well. In the end a soldier was a tool, and a tool that only had one use was disposable and replaceable.

 

Ignis was considered one of the best. Not only was he extremely smart and clever but no one could deny his fighting skills when using a polearm or daggers. He was a swift fighter, with no hesitation and careful, calculated moves. He was deadly and a valuable asset to his general. In the six years Ignis had been in the military, he was able to slowly climb his way up rank after rank. He was irreplaceable because he wished to be so, no one bothered to look at large idiots that couldn't think without mixing up their emotions, even if they were strong. Ignis planned out things differently, and he was being rewarded for all of it.

 

It was the main reason why he was so confused when he was told he was being relocated. Ravus was the one to deliver the news, and he didn't look too happy about losing him either. It somewhat made him feel better to know that his general wasn't fully agreeing with his relocation, it meant that it wasn't Ravus's decision at all. The general informed him he was going back to the capital, and he was going to be assigned to a completely new duty, he was also going to be under Ardyn Izunia's command, who just happened to be the chancellor. He was one of the most important men in all Niflheim, not only was he the right hand of the emperor but his contributions to magitek progress was one of the main reasons why they were still in this war and were undefeated.

 

“You'll be a reflection of me when you are with him. I expect you to act accordingly. My word is on the line here.” Ravus's words were still going through his head. He was for sure not going to anything to dishonor his general, but that would also depend on the assignment he was given.

 

If Ignis was to be honest, it was considered the promotion of a lifetime. Ardyn hardly ever took in soldiers and only appeared in battle if it was highly needed. The fact that he was asking Ravus to pick one of his best men meant that he didn't just want anybody. Ravus's platoon was hand-picked by the general himself, and they were considered elite soldiers that mostly deal with special missions that required the utmost care.

 

Ignis still felt somewhat guilty for leaving the battlefield. It was odd going back home when the rest of his team and his general were still at war. The empty fields were slowly being replaced by small towns and crop fields. The last time he was in the capital was four years ago, two years after his training ended and he was shipped to battle. He didn't fight right away, of course not, but just being in the field and seeing what war truly was, it was already preparing him to face whatever came his way. The first month he worked as a cook helper, and after that he was taken to his first battle. He could still smell the thick scent of smoke and copper.

 

The ride back to the capital was uneventful, and the train was spacious enough to allow him to be by himself. It was odd how he now had the luxury of solitude, he was used to riding with at least twenty other people and there was always the loud group and the quiet ones. Ignis much preferred the quiet groups, but once in a while there was nothing wrong with a loud noise.

 

Ignis arrived to the capital by noon and a car along with a driver were already waiting for him. The driver smiled and salute him out of respect before taking his luggage and waiting for Ignis to get in the car. The drive to the citadel was just as peaceful as the train ride, but now Ignis could people watch. He couldn't help himself but to smile at how peaceful everyone looked. It was the biggest reward for a soldier to go back home and see, first hand, the fruits of their labor. The peace in the capital was all thanks to their efforts, and people could run along with their daily lives. The children jumping and playing near the parks, and the mothers rushing to pick them up if they fell, they could do all of this in peace and without any worries thanks to their services.

 

The first thing Ignis noticed about the citadel though, was how massive it was getting and there were still sections under construction. He couldn't remember it being this tall, or so wide, but then again he was gone for four years. It made complete sense that the city would grow. In all honestly it was getting somewhat ridiculous. It wasn't like the citadel held many people, it was mostly living quarters and offices that kept the country running. He highly doubted they needed a building that could easily take one quarter of the city.

 

 

“This way.” The driver guided Ignis through the main door. He led him through the long hallways and just before reaching the emperor's viewing room he took a right. He was being taken to another wing, a different part of the citadel. He was probably being taken to Ardyn's private wing, which made a lot of sense given the fact that he was going to be working for him.

 

Ignis's thoughts were confirmed when the long hallway expanded into a large room, it gave off the feeling of a foyer. The driver smiled at him and exited the room, closing the doors behind him with a good luck. Ignis nodded at him as a thank you and looked around the large room. Paintings were hanging from the walls, if Ignis wasn't mistaken the paintings were of the gods themselves. The ceiling had a large mural with opaque colors that reached the columns all around the room and the main staircase. The dark colors and heavy wood gave the room an eerie feel, it almost reminded Ignis of one of those temples he would sometimes see around Tanebrae.

 

“Ah, the guest of honor! Welcome.”

 

Ignis turned to his right and bowed down right away with a formal salute. The chancellor was standing with a smirk on his face and waving at him in an informal kind of way. Odd, that was for sure but Ignis was used to the weirder things than this. Plus Ardyn looked happy to see him so he doubt the chancellor meant any type of disrespect. He was about to open his mouth to introduce himself but Ardyn was already turning back to where he came from.

 

“I know who you are, Ignis. Ravus reassured me of your credentials and didn't spare any details. He speaks very highly of you and was positive you were the perfect candidate for this position.” Ardyn motioned for Ignis to follow, not giving him even a second to think about it.

 

Ignis quickly caught up with Ardyn, walking only a couple of steps behind him. He was going to have to thank Ravus once he saw him, if he ever did again. He wasn't sure how long he was going to be back in the capital, but if the report he read was right then his mission was going to be quite long. He wasn't sure of what he was going to be doing, as the report only mentioned his relocation and that the length of his mission was indeterminate.

 

“Now, I'm sure I don't have to remind you that this mission is very important. I needed someone different, and when I spoke to Ravus I made my needs quite clear. I didn't want a brute with no brain, or a fool that would shoot at first sight. I needed someone competent, which oddly enough is hard to find nowadays in the military...” Ardyn sighed, sounding disappointed and annoyed. “I also needed someone that knows what discretion means. I hope you know it.”

 

Ignis was offended that the chancellor would even imply he was too incompetent to know how some missions were meant to be a secret and nothing else. He had been in several missions in which discretion was highly required for the objective to be a success. He knew very well how to handle important information, and most of all he wouldn't break under pressure. Ignis was aware of his strength and weaknesses and keeping a secret was for sure something very easy to accomplish.

 

“I can assure you chancellor, if I didn't know how to be discrete I wouldn't have accepted this position.” Ignis nodded slowly. Even if he hadn't been given much of a choice over his relocation, Ravus did make sure that Ignis was fully willing to cooperate. It would only tamper the mission if Ignis was unwilling, it could affect his thinking and reasoning. It was best to have a soldier marching on his own, than being dragged by duty and nothing else.

 

“Fantastic! That puts my heart at ease Ignis...” The chancellor smiled, turning to look at him. “Now, I must say that this mission not only requires discretion but a lot more than that. I guess an explanation is fully needed. I couldn't discuss anything with you in the report that was given to you. I didn't want to risk anyone getting his hands on those papers. It would be an inconvenience.”

 

“I understand.” Ignis nodded slowly and began to wonder how much longer were they going to walk. Ardyn was now taking them a flight of stairs and it didn't look like the chancellor was going to stop any time soon.

 

“Wonderful, now, are you aware of what happened during the attack to Tenebrae?” Ardyn glanced at him once again.

 

“I was in military training during that time, but the news reached us well. The attack to Tenebrae was a victory that allowed the empire to take control over Tenebrae's capital and soon the rest of the country, although the decision was to keep Tenebrae under its own jurisdiction to avoid any future battles. Captain Ravus joined the Niflheim army during this time, as a symbol of peace from Tenebrae, he is the spokesperson in between the two countries and also the one that keeps his country's loyalty on our side.”

 

“Yes, that's exactly how it goes, but the attack on Tenebrae had a different reason. I am about to tell you the main objective for the attack, something that is not written in any reports and was never released to anyone. The emperor still keeps this under secret. Do you understand?” Ardyn stopped on his tracks then.

 

Ignis looked at the metal, double doors in front of him. The hallway was dark and with no windows but chandeliers on the ceiling kept it lighted up well enough. Ignis wasn't sure how or why they needed to come here, and it was quite confusing why the room was underground. If Ignis kept track of things properly, and he usually did, the location of these doors was five floors in the underground levels and they also passed several guards in the way here. The hallway gave the feeling of a prison more than anything else.

 

“The mission behind the attack on Tenebrae was to capture and secure a target,” Ardyn pulled out a key from within his coat. “The main goal was not to conquer at all, it just became a bonus, if anything we were surprised with how vulnerable Tenebrae was during our attack. Goes to show the mighty can fall the fastest sometimes. We succeed nonetheless.” With a simple twist of the key Ardyn was holding, the doors unlocked opened by themselves. The gears connecting the doors to the walls were grinding and whining, showing how heavy and thick the doors actually were.

 

Ignis looked around the room, it looked like a normal bedroom. It was massive, no doubt about it but most rooms in the citadel were quite large. The room was luxurious, the expensive furniture and decorations were very much like the chancellor. Ignis was sure the room was designed by Ardyn and no one else, after all he could be quite extravagant and this room pretty much had his signature all over. The room was royal blue and black, with some silver here and there, heavy decorations and paintings adorned the ceiling and walls, and it reminded Ignis of the foyer except it wasn't red. It wasn't until Ignis was done looking around the room that he noticed someone sleeping on the large bed, buried underneath the blankets and pillows.

 

“I present to you, Noctis Lucis Caelum. The prince of Lucis and the price of the attack on Tenebrae,” Ardyn smirked and walked further inside the room, motioning for Ignis to follow along.

 

Ignis wasn't sure how to respond to this. The prince of Lucis, he was right here in front of him? He was just at a loss of what to even think about this sort of situation. But it did explain why they were still at war with the Lucis kingdom, it also made sense as to why they were always so careful when attacking them, still all of this was beyond him. The attack on Tenebrae was six years ago, that meant the empire had the prince captive since then? If so, why hadn't they done anything to end the war. The prince was not like any other political captive, if what he knew was correct then he was the sole heir to the throne and not to mention King Regis's most precious and important priority above all else. It was no wonder they were struggling in the front lines with so many kingsglaive, the numbers had multiplied tremendously during the past few years.

 

“As you know, we have been at war with Lucis for quite some time now. We outnumber them by a lot and our technology is for sure superior, but they have something much bigger than that. The Lucis magic makes our numbers meaningless and our technology laughable. As you are aware they control the crystal, which creates the barrier we can't even dare to touch. The reason why we have lasted this long is thanks to this little secret that we have.” Ardyn shrugged one of his shoulders and turned to face Ignis with a smirk.

 

“Your new assignment is to guard the prince. You have to be aware though, you are not only going to be protecting him from any intruders that might want to rescue him, but also from anyone that tries to murder him, even if it is one of our own. A few soldiers sometimes find about him, and their first instinct is to kill him. We cannot allow that to happen at all. You'll be given a room in my wing, you can feel welcome and are allowed to roam everywhere, except my room. You can use the several kitchens that we have, the bathrooms, private pools, gym and all of that. Yet, I must insist that you spend most of your time with him,” Ardyn pointed towards the sleeping figure on the bed and turned once more to walk towards the bed. “Not only is he the reason why Lucis hasn't crushed us yet, but we also believe he holds the key to ending them once and for all.”

 

Ignis furrowed his brows and sighed quietly. It was for sure a different mission, something he wasn't totally comfortable with. He was used to fighting or coming up with strategies. He was not one to take care of people, sure during battles if there were people wounded and he was unharmed he'll help without doubt. But that was until the medical team arrived and took over, it was only a couple of days at most, sometimes even a few hours. It was completely different from taking care of someone else full time, on top of that taking care of a prisoner.

 

Ignis was out of his element, but he also wasn't one to back down from a challenge. He also didn't have much of a choice. Ravus was the one that asked him personally to do this. He couldn't let the general down, his name was on the line and Ravus's position was pretty rough as it was with being a high ranking general and also of Tanebrae royal blood. He also wasn't sure what would happened if he said no. Ardyn spilled enough information to just let him walk out without some sort of consequence. Ignis's hands were tied, there was no way out of this one.

 

“Understood, is there some kind of schedule I must follow?” He might as well get as much information as he could, or at least get some sort of feel to what he was doing.

 

“No! Not at all, but you are more than welcome to make one if you wish. He might take a little bit to get used to it though,” Ardyn smiled, crossing his arms over his chest before rolling his eyes with a sigh. “I should probably introduce you two, better get it over with now.”

 

Ignis nodded slowly and followed Ardyn towards the bed. He was more than surprised when Ardyn's way of waking up the sleeping boy was by grabbing his arm and jerking him awake. He heard a soft noise and Ignis slowly moved around the chancellor, still keeping a couple of feet in between them as he did so.

 

The blankets were pooling around the sleeping form that was now sitting up. Ignis looked over the prince, taking in his appearance. The boy's body was slender, with long arms and skinny shoulders, but held some kind of grace to him, something Ignis couldn't quite describe but he paid it no mind for now. Thick, dark raven hair was framing a slim face with full lips, and it was then that Ignis noticed his eyes. The prince's eyes were clouded and a light blue color, more importantly there was a large scar that ran from the right side of his face to the left. The scar was more prominent on the right side, and it got slimmer as it reached the opposite side. It looked like the cut from a dagger that slashed through his face. He could see a scar on the bridge of his nose, which only confirmed his conclusion. He was blind. Noctis was blind, his eyes were open but weren't looking at him, in fact they weren't looking at anything. He was tilting his head towards Ignis and Ardyn's direction not saying a word.

 

“What happened to his eyes?” Ignis asked before he could stop himself.

 

“He tried to escape, and almost succeeded,” Ardyn chuckled, and looked at Ignis with a pleasant smile.

 

Ignis couldn't help himself but to notice the sinister look that crossed Ardyn's face, but it was quickly masked by his charming smile. It was there for sure, but it vanished in the blink of an eye. It was still disturbing how he just admitted to blinding the prince for trying to escape, as if was nothing at all. Ignis couldn't even imagine what it must be like.

 

“But let's not talk about that, not when we have other things at hand. Like introductions,” Ardyn grabbed Noctis's face, turning it to face Ignis. “Good morning Noctis! Not that you know is morning but eh! Details. Let me introduce you to your new guardian. Say hello to Ignis Scientia.”

 

The prince remained quiet, his head still tilting even when Ardyn was holding it. Ignis decided to take the first step then, literally and figuratively. He took a step closer to the bed and bowed his head even if Noctis couldn't see him. “It is a pleasure to meet you, prince Noctis”

 

“Yeah, pleasure” Noctis mumbled quietly, his voice quiet. He pulled away from Ardyn's hold then, not looking at all pleased when the chancellor began to stroke his hair in return.

 

“Noctis, don't be rude. Ignis is very polite and respectful, I'm sure you two are going to get along just fine.” Ardyn smiled, his fingers moving through the thick strands of hair.

 

“Or he'll try to choke me while I'm asleep like the last one.” Noctis shrugged one of his shoulders and pulled away from Ardyn's touches for the second time, this time opting to hide underneath the blankets once more.

 

“Ah? Sleeping again already,” Ardyn mused. “Are your dreams that pleasant?”

 

“No, but they keep me from talking to you,” Noctis mumbled underneath the blankets and the chancellor laughed at his words.

 

“He is a feisty little thing as you can see, please do have some patience with him...” Ardyn stood up then, smirking at Ignis one last time as he moved towards the door. “I for one have very little patience, right Noctis?”

 

The prince didn't reply, but Ignis could see the figure curling up tighter underneath the blankets. Ignis wasn't stupid, he wasn't given this new position if he was. It didn't take a genius to figure out who was probably the one to cause the wounds on Noctis's eyes. It was a cruel thing to do, a drastic measure for sure, but it did leave the prince defenseless and docile. Anywhere could be a prison, if one didn't know where they were.

 

“My patience is quite high chancellor, do not worry.” Ignis firmly nodded and twitched when Ardyn patted his shoulder.

 

“Fantastic. I'm sure we are all going to get along just fine.”

 

Even if the chancellor's words were reassuring, Ignis couldn't help himself but to think of them as lies. The chancellor was lying, and it was now Ignis's personal mission to figure out why.

 

 

 

 

 

The first week Ignis didn't do any sort of changes. He was merely observing and trying to come up with a plan and a good schedule around his new responsibility. Ignis ended up picking a room near the prince, just in case he needed to rush to his room as fast as possible, also in case of any intruders. He was glad to know he could at least still have some free time. Ignis would wake up at the crack of dawn, when the sun was hardly raising and the prince wouldn't wake up until near noon. Noctis's sleeping schedule was odd though, sometimes he'll wake up at noon, while other times Ignis would be surprised to see him already dressed and sitting on his bed.

 

Everything about the prince was honestly odd, something wasn't quite right at all. It wasn't just his indifferent attitude but his actions. He would undressed in front of Ignis without even giving him a warning, and walked around the room completely naked while he looked for new clothes to wear. It was something Ignis had to put a stop to right away! He asked Noctis to please let him know when hew as going to undress so he could leave the room, or if he could prepare his clothes first and then change in the bathroom, would be swell too. Noctis however looked confused and somewhat annoyed at his request, but he follow along with it anyways. Ignis didn't have to go through another one of those incidents ever again. Thank the gods.

 

The prince was easy to startle too, even with his excellent hearing and ability to follow along his movements, he would still twitch and flinch when Ignis got too close. He would avoid close contact at all cost. Even if Ignis was just trying to talk to him and get close to him, Noctis would always end up walking away, or at least keeping some distance in between them. Sometimes he would even walk around furniture just so Ignis couldn't quite get near him.

 

Noctis wouldn't speak much either, but when he did his words were defensive and he kept his guard up at all times. It was something normal for Ignis since after all the prince was a prisoner, still after six years you would think that maybe he'll get tired of it. Six years were a long time, and Noctis's behavior was still stubborn and extremely defensive, as if he was waiting to be attacked. The only time his behavior seem to change was when Ardyn was present. The only logical conclusion Ignis could come up with was the fact that Noctis mentioned being attacked by previous guards before, which meant he just didn't trust Ignis not to try to kill him.

 

Ignis also noticed how the prince was treated by the surrounding staff. Noctis was only allowed to leave the room with him, and when they did the guards would follow along with them. They'll taunt Noctis, and would get too close to his personal space, but the prince remained quiet with his head held high and ignoring them as if they were not there. Ignis had to interfere when one of the guards decided to reach out for the prince though, he quickly stopped the hand from touching Noctis's shoulder and twisted it with ease.

 

“It isn't your job to touch him.” Ignis shoved the offending guard away and ignored how pissed he looked.

 

The cooks were cruel as well. Ignis first found out about this when he walked in on Noctis eating food from a plate on the floor with his hands. He wasn't given any kind of eating utensils and his food was always left somewhere different in the room, which didn't make any sense when there was a perfectly good table that could be put to use. The cook that brought his food was purposely leaving it somewhere on the floor, making the prince's job to try to find it by crawling around the room. If he walked he could step on it or kick it onto the floor. But whenever Noctis was able to find it, he would sit on the floor in between his legs and start eating with his hands, making sure it was cold enough for him to touch before even attempting it.

 

Ignis made sure to let the cook know that from now on he was going to be handling Noctis's meals himself, and if he had any sort of complain he could redirect them to Ardyn himself. In the end no one voiced their complains.

 

Noctis didn't have a walking stick. If he ever lost his sense of direction he would walk through the hallway by touching the wall next to him. He could recognize what door was which just by touching it. It made Ignis curious as to how long ago was he blinded. Noctis didn't act as if this was something new to him, and the wounds on his face were fading to a color similar to the rest of his skin. It was an old wound for sure, it had to be longer than two years at least. Ignis wanted to ask, and was awfully curious about it but he had to remind himself that this week was just for observing.

 

Ignis was somewhat concern of the lack of schedule the prince had to follow. Noctis would mostly sleep all day and night, or wake up to read books with his fingers. He would walk through the hallways and sit in one of the large living rooms to listen to the radio but other than that he did almost nothing. He avoided any type of social interaction with anyone around him, and for good reason. Ignis would had done the same if the people around him treated him like they treat Noctis. Even if Noctis was the son of their enemy, he was still a guest in Niflheim, and he was still valuable to the chancellor and the emperor, this kind of behavior was just not tolerated by Ignis at all. He pride himself in being not easily pursued by personal feelings, and he couldn't feel any hatred towards the prince at all. He was taken when he was a child, hardly someone worthy of hating when he hadn't done anything against his country at all.

 

It was only his first week here though, but he was already planning out something quite different for his second one. Ignis smiled to himself as he kept writing the prince's new schedule with precise handwriting. Next week was going to be a whole new week, and he was for sure going to take the prince by surprise. He only hoped it could be a good one.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOOOLYYYY SHIIIIIT! This chapter is long. It almost killed me
> 
> Jesus fuck send help, plz.
> 
> Sorry for shitty mistakes, my mind melted trying to write this.
> 
> Tumblr: https://demnocts.tumblr.com/ <3<3<3

Noctis almost fell off the bed when his bed sheets were roughly pulled off of his body. He sat up right away, his head tilting from one side to the other. He was groggy and blinking lazily, trying to figure out what the hell was happening. Noctis had been peacefully sleeping and he was never interrupted unless it was Ardyn, and usually the chancellor wouldn’t wake up him by pulling off his blankets! It was something he was for sure not used to, but all he wanted to do was to curl up on the bed and go to sleep again. He sighed loudly and tried to reach for his blankets, but he couldn’t feel them anywhere around him.

“Good morning, Noctis.”

Oh, it all made sense now. Noctis completely forgot about his new caretaker. He groaned and flopped down back on the bed, hugging one of his pillows. He curled up around it, closing his eyes stubbornly.

“I tried to wake you up normally, but it appears that normal methods are not good enough for you.” Ignis chuckled at the stubborn teen. Noctis was reaching out for another pillow but Ignis was faster and snatched it away from his fingertips.

“What time is it?” Noctis mumbled, using his pillow to hide his face and muffle Ignis’s voice.

“It is a quarter pass eight. Which means we are behind schedule already, so chop chop! Time to get up and get ready.” Ignis walked over to one of the dressers and looked through the different items of clothing until he was able to find some that he considered good enough.

Ignis brought the clothes over to Noctis’s bed, and was surprised to see that the prince was already sitting on the bed. He still looked like he was ready to fall over and sleep again. Noctis’s head was bobbing and his eyes were blinking slowly. Ignis was sure if he just pushed him on the bed the prince would pass out right away again. He wasn’t going to allow that though, he placed Noctis’s clothes next to him and gently tapped his knuckles against his shoulder.

“Go ahead and change, I’ll be back with breakfast.”

“You are seriously not going to do this every morning, are you?” Noctis tilted his head towards him, and frowned, looking less than happy.

“I will. I prepared a schedule for us to follow from now on, there is no better way to feel productive than to follow a steady routine.” Ignis was heading for the door, ignoring how Noctis was mumbling something in between his lips.

Ignis checked his watch and sighed at how behind they were already. He honestly never expected how challenging it would be to wake up the prince. He remember Ardyn easily waking him up but that involved manhandling the prince, which wouldn’t be a great start. If Noctis felt threaten then he’ll be less likely to cooperate and he could become hostile towards Ignis. It was best to be safe than sorry.

Ignis quickly moved through the corridors and only stopped by the kitchen to get Noctis’s breakfast. The tray of food was ready to be picked up, and the cook even offered him good luck. Ignis was confused by the cook’s words but didn’t question them, it wasn’t like he was storming to the front lines. He was just going to give the prince his breakfast, with that in mind Ignis made his way to the underground levels. He was expecting Noctis to be dressed and ready to go, but he wasn’t that lucky.

The room was empty? Ignis frowned and set the food down on the table. Noctis’s clothes were still on the bed, untouched and very much ignored. It wasn’t like the prince could get out, the door would lock automatically when closed. However, that didn’t change the fact that the prince was nowhere in sight...inside the room that is. Ignis rolled his eyes when he noticed the missing blankets and pillows, there was no way. He quickly made his way towards the bathroom and knocked on the door once, then twice. He tried his luck with the door handle but it was locked.

“Noctis, we are not playing this game.” Ignis fixed his glasses in frustration, not believing this was happening.

“Fuck your schedule.” A very sleepy voice screamed within the bathroom.

Oh, so this is how it was going to be? Alright, well, Ignis was fully prepared for this. The prince will just have to wait and see.

  
  


 

The next morning Noctis found himself jumping off his bed and landing roughly on the floor when Ignis used a spray bottle full of water to wake him up. The cold water was sprayed on his face and it woke him up instantly, but it also startled him and the quick movement made him fall off the bed with his blankets all around him. Noctis groaned and dropped his head on the floor. He wasn’t moving but he was fully awake. He growled like an upset cat when Ignis in return sprayed more water on his head.

“Knock it off! I get it!” Noctis hissed loudly and quickly got to his feet. He stomped over to the dresser. The prince touched his clothes, his glaring eyes staring in front of him as he picked the clothes he wanted to wear.

Ignis watched the whole time, only turning around to look away from the prince when he started undressing. Noctis was being extra loud, showing how upset he was by stomping his feet and slamming the dresser drawer shut. He was at least dressed on time this time, and Ignis took his victory.

Noctis turned around, dragging his feet to get his shoes until a spray of water on his face stopped him. He gasped and narrowed his eyes, his head tilting towards Ignis’s direction. “What the hell was that for!”

“Your shirt is on backwards.” Ignis pointed out. Did he need to spray water on him to point it out? No, not at all, but the way Noctis would squeeze his eyes and wrinkle his nose when he did so was pretty funny.

“Oh, my bad! How very rude of me, let me SEE what I can do about it...” The prince pointed towards his eyes as he spoke before pulling off his shirt and putting it on right. “Oh LOOK! I was able to fix it.”

Ignis stared at Noctis frustrated face and couldn’t help himself but to use the spray bottle again. He wasn’t surprised at all when the prince opened up the drawer again and started throwing the clothes inside at Ignis. It was well worth it.

 

 

It was a brand new day when Ignis found himself unable to walk inside Noctis’s room. It wasn’t because the key wasn’t working or the door was broken, but because there was something quite heavy pushed against the door. He was only able to open the door by a sliver, and it thankfully allowed him to see what exactly was blocking the door. The dinning room table and large couch had been pushed against the door, blocking the doorway. Noctis was laying down on the couch, his blankets and pillows all around him creating the perfect little nest for him to sleep in. Ignis was honestly amazed at how the hell was he able to do this.

“How long did it take you to do this?” Ignis asked through the door.

“A couple of hours. I lost track when my leg started cramping.” Noctis answered within the blankets, sounding so pleased with himself.

“If only you would put as much effort into waking up, as you do with making my life harder than it has to be.” Ignis sighed, taking off his glasses to rub his eyes.

“Could, but won’t.” Noctis’s smug little voice called out and then he was curling up underneath his blankets. He was ready to go back to sleep.

  
  


 

Ignis was dealing with a child, there was absolutely no doubt about it. He left the war for this, to take care of a mischievous child. Noctis was trying his harder to be impossible to deal with . At least that’s how Ignis was seeing it as. The prince would do everything in his power not to wake up when Ignis needed him to. He would lock himself in the bathroom or hide underneath the huge bed where Ignis couldn’t reach him. Well, this was of course after Ignis made sure he wasn’t able to drag the furniture anymore.

It was infuriating trying to deal with Noctis. If Ignis wasn’t a patient man he would had walked out of this assignment a long time ago. He was a trained soldier, not a babysitter. He was used to dealing with very calculating situations surrounded by a team that was willing to work with him, but Noctis was anything but willing. It would be easier to just drop everything and let the prince do whatever. It really would, it would for sure make his stay here a lot better, specially because Ardyn didn’t care about what he did as long as he kept an eye on Noctis.

Ignis just couldn’t bring himself to drop his original plan, it just didn’t feel right, and even though Noctis was being a complete brat with him, he was still acting a lot different than from the first week Ignis observed him. It was true that Noctis was constantly going against his orders, but he was conversing and interacting with him in a completely different way that he did with the rest of the guards. Noctis just acted different, and even his bratty attitude and stubborn nature was easy to understand. He was playing with Ignis in his own way, and Ignis was thankful he was able to see this so quickly or else he would had been in a terrible mood every day.

The days in which he was able to get Noctis out of his room, Ignis took his little vengeance. He wasn’t by all means trying to be heartless, but he still thought it was entertaining how Noctis was such a lazy cat. He would flop down from one place to another and nap at all hours of the day. It was how Ignis decided of a fitting punishment for the prince, exercise. The third floor had a small gym and Ignis ended up dragging the prince over, even if Noctis whined the whole time. He set up the exercise equipment and helped Noctis on top of the treadmill. Noctis of course didn’t know what it was until Ignis turned it on.

Ignis couldn’t deny that he was taking advantage of Noctis’s blindness to sort out his punishments and quite honestly he did feel a bit guilty over it. But Noctis’s face was priceless when the treadmill started moving and he had to cling to the front of it, almost hugging it for dear life.

“Oh my god, you jerk face! This isn’t funny!” Noctis whined, listening to Ignis trying to muffle his laugh behind his hand. In the end he did help Noctis set himself up properly in the treadmill and promised the prince he would be free to go as long as he worked out for at least an hour. Noctis seeing as he didn’t have much of a choice he did what he was told and ended up collapsing on the floor soon after. He was sweating non-stop, his shirt clinging to his slim form and his messy hair was sticking to his cheeks and forehead.

“I-I’m dying.” Noctis said, panting and breathing heavily through his nose.

“No, you are not dying. You are actually moving, I think that’s quite the opposite of dying.” Ignis took his victory and made it a point to bring Noctis to the gym a couple of times during the week. It also seem to give the prince more energy during the day, although after a few hours he would go back to napping and being lazy again.

Exercising was a good way to not only keep the prince busy, but also fully wake him up in the mornings. It was was now in Ignis's schedule as the first order of business. After that was breakfast and then recreation time for the prince. It wasn't like Noctis could do much, but Ignis did make sure to get him a few more books in braille. He wanted to ask Noctis who taught him to read like this, since no one truly cared much about the prince's living conditions in here but he didn't want to pry. Maybe somewhere in the future he could ask him this.

 

 

If Noctis wasn't reading books he was always listening to the radio. He seemed to spend an awful lot of time listening to it, even if sometimes he did nothing else but to close his eyes and curl up on the couch. Ignis would use this time to read a book or sometimes he would try his own hand at writing a short story. In reality he was just trying to distract himself, as it was awfully boring to wait for the prince to have his fill. Maybe Ignis could acquire a radio for Nocti's room, it would for sure keep him locked up and gave Ignis the freedom to leave the palace.

“Are you satisfied yet? We could always do something else.” Ignis stood up from his spot on the couch and stretched his arms above his head. He was tired of sitting down.

“Yeah, sure. Turn on the TV, let's watch a movie.” Noctis response was so fluent that Ignis found himself reaching for the remote before he stopped himself and looked at the prince with a deadpanned expression.

“Very funny,” Ignis rolled his yes and dropped the remote on the couch. “Five more minutes, alright?”

The silence that followed was odd, it wasn't tense or any of the like. Ignis could almost feel dread, and he wasn't sure how it came to this. The way Noctis's moods changed were unpredictable, but somehow he was able to drag everyone around him. As if people were meant to rotate and move at his will, depending in how he felt. It was probably the royal blood in him, although Ignis wasn't sure if that was all there was to it.

“I just like waiting for the news.” Noctis voice was quiet. He kept his eyes closed and his head rested against one of the large pillows on the couch.

“For what kind of news?” Ignis genuine curiosity was honest in his voice.

“News from home...where else?”

Ignis made it a point to let Noctis near the radio as often as their schedule would allow it.

  
  


It was thanks to Ignis that the prince was now given proper eating utensils, or at lest that's what Ignis was expecting when he was serving dinner. Ignis wouldn't pay much attention to Noctis's food once the prince started eating, but he noticed a knife was always missing for Noctis to be able to cut through the meat or the tough food he was given. Honestly how incompetent could these people be, it wasn't that difficult to give the prince a knife. Ignis was going to be here with him to make sure it was returned.

“They keep forgetting to give you a knife? I'll have a talk with the cook, this is the fifth time.” Ignis shook his head and watched as Noctis struggled to break the pieces of meat into smaller pieces. In the end the prince gave up and started using his hands.

“It's fine, I'm just glad they give me stuff now. Don't tell them anything, I don't want them to take it out on me.” Noctis shrugged one of his shoulders and took another bite of his meat. He licked his fingers clean and smiled at Ignis.

“If you insist, but they still shouldn't treat you like this.” Ignis sighed quietly and took a seat on the large couch.

“They shouldn't but they do. Oh well, it doesn't matter.” Noctis shrugged his shoulders uncaringly and finished the large piece of meat before using his fork to eat the mashed potatoes.

It wasn't just the eating utensils that were bothering Ignis anymore. He started to notice little things about Noctis as he ate his food. Sometimes the prince would wrinkle his nose and make a face after tasting his food. At first he just figured Noctis was a picky eater since he hated to eat vegetables, but it was more than that. There were times when Noctis would take a bite of his food before just shrugging his shoulders and saying he wasn't hungry, and it was making Ignis suspicious.

It was one of those days. Noctis took a spoonful of his oatmeal before losing complete interest, instead he started peeling the orange next to his plate. Ignis raised one of his brows and walked over to the table, staring down at the brown oatmeal before grabbing the spoon on the table.

“Don't do that.” Noctis warning came too late. Ignis was already taking a spoonful of the oatmeal in his mouth and he found himself quickly coughing against his hand. He turned his head and pulled a handkerchief from with in his pocket to cough and spit out the foul food in his mouth. The oatmeal was spoiled, the milk tasted disgusting and it was thick. The flavor was sticking to the roof of his mouth and the odd texture was clinging to his tongue. It was completely disgusting, and he was just amazed that Noctis did nothing but to swallow the disgusting food before turning it away.

“It's rotten.” Ignis shook his head and quickly walked over to the bathroom to rinse his mouth.

“I told you not to do it.” Noctis yelled at him from the table and continued to keep his orange. Once it was peeled he split it in half and began to eat the small wedges.

Ignis was back with a towel in his hands. He wiped the rest of the water off of his mouth and dried his hands. “You forgot to mention it was expired.” Noctis only shrugged his shoulders in response and popped another orange wedge in his mouth.

“Are the meals all like this?” Ignis dropped the towel on the table and stared down at the prince with a frown.

“Not all of them.” Noctis mumbled quietly and finished eating the rest of his orange before reaching for his bottle of water to drink.

“Unbelievable.” Ignis sighed loudly and shook his head. Was there something he didn't have to fix in this place? This was beyond ridiculous. It was starting to seriously get in his nerves, plus it was making his job harder than it had to be. He couldn't feed Noctis this, no one deserved to be fed something like this, it could make him seriously ill. It could even kill him. Were the people here so idiotic that they couldn't see that? If the prince died they were in serious troubles. He was the barging chip that was keeping them from getting overrun by kingsglaives.

“I'll start preparing your meals starting tomorrow. Please bear with it for today.” Ignis nodded slowly and almost missed the smile on Noctis's lips. Almost.

The preparation of food was not an easy task. It was quite complicated if one wanted to achieve something good, and although everything was an upgrade from what the prince had been fed Ignis didn't want to do a mediocre job. It was the reason why he ended up looking at recipes online while watching Noctis run in the treadmill. Some recipes were easy enough and didn't require that many ingredients, but he was going to have to find recipes that had similar items. Ignis didn't want to end up with a massive shopping list even if Ardyn was going to be the one paying for everything.

Ignis went grocery shopping that night. He bought everything he needed and took it to one of the kitchens that were unused. The fridge was empty and clean, something he was thankful for and he also had a decent amount of cooking equipment inside the cabinets. He wasn't going to be cooking anything for now, but he did take his time looking through the kitchen while putting the groceries away.

The next morning Noctis woke up to the smell of something heavenly. Ignis didn't even struggle to wake him up. Noctis was able to wake up on his own just by the smell of the food he was carrying. Ignis placed the plate on the table and couldn't help himself but to smirk when he noticed Noctis already sitting up on the bed with a curious look on his face. The prince's head was tilting towards his direction and he was bluntly sniffing the air around him.

“As promised. I'll be preparing your meals from now on. I hope you find this of your satisfaction.” Ignis watched as Noctis got off the bed and walked over to where the table was.

The prince slowly touched the plate and reached for the fork with his fingertips. He wasn't sure of what he was eating but he was cutting through the soft food like nothing. It had a sweet smell to it. He could smell honey and butter, just the smell already had his mouth watering and before he could stop and think of what it was he was putting the soft breakfast in his mouth. It was pancakes. He was eating pancakes. Noctis's eyes widened and before he knew it, he was shoving the food in his mouth as fast as he could. It just tasted so good. Everything about it tasted so good. He couldn't remember the last time he was able to eat a meal like this. He wanted to stop and enjoy it but he also wanted to just eat as much as he could right away. Almost as if he was afraid it was going to be taken away from him.

“Slow down, you are going to choke.” Ignis hid a small laugh behind his hand and watched as the prince devoured the food.

Noctis didn't slow though. He kept eating in the same way, but a wide smile was spreading on his lips and his clouded eyes look more alive than ever. It was hard for Ignis not to notice this. It was hard for him to ignore the smile on Noctis's full lips and the way his face looked so relax. The crest that was usually on his brows banished, giving him a youthful look. Ignis couldn't recall ever seeing Noctis this happy, in fact he couldn't recall ever seeing him smile. It was the first time in three weeks he was able to make the prince smile. It truly suited him.

  
  


“Do you have any family?”

The question came out of the blue, and it took Ignis by surprise. Noctis usually would never ask him any personal questions. “I used to, yes.”

“Oh, what happened?” Noctis closed the book he was holding and turned on his chair to face Ignis.

“I come from a military family. Almost everyone in my family went to war or died due to it. The rest died from old age. My uncle was my last relative and he died a few years back just after I enrolled in the military.” It was just Ignis now.

“Oh...you must hate me like the guards do, right?” Noctis shrugged one of his shoulders, and leaned his head against the chair's back.

“I do not,” Ignis couldn't miss the surprised look on Noctis's face. “Propaganda, military strategies, and the fear of the unknown is what makes people hate the Lucis kingdom. You were taken as a child and became a political hostage. Hardly someone that has earned my hate, to be honest.”

“War is about people protecting what they believe to be right, Noctis. I fight for Niflheim because is my home, if I don't fight it will be taken. I might not agree with everything we do, but that doesn't stop it from being my home. I fight for the people that are innocent and unaware of the dangers at our borders. I fight so people like them can have a future. I don't fight because I hate the Lucis. I have never met them, well, not until now and I can't say I hate you at all.”

Noctis nodded slowly and stood up. He walked over to the couch where Ignis was sitting and flopped down next to him. He closed his eyes as if he was thinking and hummed quietly. “You are not like the other people I met before. Well, in here.”

“Well, I can assure you, there are more of us than them. Sometimes it is just hard to believe it because of the environment you are forced to endure. But I can promise you, not all of us are like them.” Ignis gently placed his hand on one of Noctis's shoulders.

“I'll remember that, yeah.” Noctis chuckled quietly and smiled.

“Plus you were taken before you could even fight. I don't consider you a treat since you weren't even trained to use the Lucis magic.” Ignis missed the way Noctis's eyes flickered for a second but the prince only nodded his head in response.

“Yeah, but...tomorrow, would it be okay to eat fish?” Noctis rubbed his lips together at his request and tilted his head towards Ignis.

“Certainly, as long as you eat the salad that goes with it.” Ignis chuckled at the loud groan that Noctis gave in response.

Ignis left the prince's room that night after Noctis fell asleep. He locked the door behind him and left for the kitchen to prepare everything for tomorrow's breakfast, lunch and dinner. He was still going to have to wake up early and go buy fresh fish for dinner tomorrow, but it was only a small trip to the market. It was always best to get fresh fish than frozen after all. Ignis finished in the kitchen and left for his room, but not before making sure the guards were in their corresponding posts. It was nothing new that they would slack off during the night, and it was pretty normal since the one prisoner they were supposed to be guarding was harmless.

During the night, Ignis dreamed of smoke and gunpowder. The loud noises buzzing against his ears were making him dizzy, and the loud screams were blending in with everything else. The high pitched noise that follow was making him ignore everything else but his breathing. He could feel his heart beating against his rib cage and he could smell and taste copper in the air. The wet dirt was clinging to his body and he could see blood mixing with the rain. He kept moving, his grip tight on his weapons. He had to keep moving and keep fighting, even as he watched his own team being shot. Even as he watched as they were being blown away by the Lucis's magic. He had to keep going. It as a victory they couldn't afford to lose.

But in the mists of it all, he could hear a familiar voice screaming his name. The voice was cracking and breaking, sounding so lost and out of place. Ignis turned his body to look back, and standing there, in the middle of the battlefield was no other than Noctis. The prince looked clean and flawless, untouched by everything around him, but the danger was still there and Noctis didn't know where he was going. The prince's bare feet were dragging him through the mud, and his hands were reaching out in front of him, trying to find anything, but he could only touch air. The clouded eyes were searching for him and finding darkness.

Ignis needed to reach him. He needed to get near him before it was too late. He ran towards the prince, ignoring the fire and the kingsglaives that were trying to block his path. He ran as fast as he could and just before he could reach Noctis's delicate hands, a blade was piercing through his chest. The long sword was cutting through the flesh of Noctis's chest, leaving him his eyes wide as blood began to crawl from within his mouth. The clouded eyes rolled back before closing and Noctis's body fell, lifelessly. He was dead and Ignis couldn't do anything else but to gather the stiff body in his arms.

Ignis took in a deep breath as he woke up from his nightmare. It was almost as if he was remembering how to breathe. He quickly sat up on the bed and shook his head. He looked around the room, finding comfort in the fact that everything was as he left it. Ignis's heart was still beating far too quickly, and cold sweat was clinging to his forehead, but everything seemed fine. He was not in the battlefield anymore. He was back in the citadel, but thinking so wasn't really helping him stop the trembling on his hands.

It was the reason why Ignis decided a walk was needed. He couldn't go back to sleep now, he was too awake and it was only two in the morning. It was best if he did a night round, maybe he would give the guards a good scare for slacking off. It sounded entertaining enough, and with that in mind Ignis changed into a pair of casual trousers and a white button up shirt. Hopefully after seeing Noctis in his room he could go back to sleep with peace in mind.

Ignis left his room and made his way to the underground levels but frowned when he noticed the guards were nowhere to be seen. Even as he went to the second floor he couldn't find any guards, and the third floor didn't look any better. Where the hell was everyone? He couldn't find any of them. He figured that maybe they were on break but the break room was empty and they couldn't all just leave at the same time. It didn't make sense. The ground floor was also empty, or at least it looked like it. Ignis could hear noises not too far and he was able to see light from down the hallway.

The door for one of the bathrooms was cracked open and Ignis could see the light was coming from there. It was the bathroom near Noctis's bedroom and thanks to that he was able to notice that the prince's bedroom door was open. The guards had one of the keys but there was no reasons for them to go inside Noctis's bedroom unless the prince specifically asked for help. Did something happened to Noctis? Ignis found himself almost running towards the source of light. He couldn't help the odd feeling in his stomach that was building up, something was wrong, something was very wrong.

What greeted Ignis was unreal. He was almost sure he was still dreaming, because he wasn't able to move his legs and was frozen in place. Noctis was on the floor, his clothes missing. He was completely drenched in water, his hair covering his closed eyes as it clung to his face. He was coughing water and turning his head away from the bathroom hose that was being aimed at his face. The hot water was making his skin red. He was trying to crawl away but a hand on his hair pulled him back and held him in place.

“Hold him still.” The guard holding the hose hissed out.

“I'm trying, shut up.” Another guard growled back at him and kept his hold in Noctis's hair.

“Come on prince, spread 'em.”

Noctis reacted by pulling his legs closer to his chest, keeping them tightly shut. He rubbed his lips together and tried to push at the guard that was now reaching for his ankle to try to pull his legs open. He kicked his legs, the slippery, wet skin making it hard to get a hold of him.

“Why the fuck are you making such a big deal. I'm sure Izunia does this all the fucking time, right?”

Noctis ignored the laughter that follow and instead kicked his legs harder until two of the guards were pulling back with an amused look on their faces. It wasn't like Noctis was aiming right to begin with. He couldn't see where they were.

“Or that new guy? You are ignoring us now that you got him? What a heartless bitch.” The guard aimed the bathroom hose at his face again, and Noctis quickly turned his head. At first the pressure wasn't bothering him much, but after it had been done over and over again it was starting to hurt a lot, specially when the water was so hot it was steaming.

“Fuck off!” Noctis hissed loudly and slapped the hose away. A hand quickly grabbed his wrist and pulled him across the floor. He kicked his legs and began to struggle again but a pair of hands were holding his thighs and letting one of the guards slip in between his legs.

“Don't worry, I'll make sure you enjoy this.” The voice was near his ear and Noctis only growled in return and began to struggle again. He kicked his legs and trashed around until the weight on top of him was being lifted.

Ignis pulled the guard off of Noctis by the back of his shirt. He yanked him off with such force that the guard ended up choking with the collar of his shirt. He shoved the man against one of the walls, the glare in his eyes looking more deadly than his actions. The room was quiet now, none of the guards were moving.

Ignis snatched one of the large towels and walked over to Noctis, reaching for the prince. He hesitated when Noctis flinched and started backing away. He wasn't aware that Ignis was here now. “Noctis, I need you to stay still so I can give you this towel and get you back to your room.” Ignis voice was calm. He was trying to hold back his rage.

Noctis sighed quietly in relief at the familiar voice and nodded his head slowly. He let Ignis help him to his feet and then the warm towel was around his wet body. Ignis kept an arm around his shoulders and guided him out of the bathroom and into his bedroom. The door was locked behind them and Ignis was already rushing to get Noctis in a warm proper bath.

“I can leave if you wish. I don't want to make you uncomfortable.” Ignis called from within the bathroom, letting the water run until it was a nice temperature.

“N-no...it's fine, you can stay.” Noctis followed Ignis's voice to the bathroom, and he sat by the edge of the tub, waiting for the bath to be ready.

The silence that followed was awkward. Ignis wanted to ask what happened, he wanted to ask many things but he also didn't want to know the answers. It just felt like he hadn't been doing things right, that maybe he was too blind to see how things truly were around here. He felt out of place, the citadel just felt like a different world. One that wasn't too pleasant either.

“They have done this before...” Notics voice was the one cutting through the thick silence. “Other guards as well. I know that's what you are thinking. It has been like this for a while. So, don't blame yourself, okay?”

Ignis could only nod in response, even if Noctis couldn't see him. He finished prepping the bath and let Noctis take his time. Ignis ended up taking a seat in one of the couches, his head tilting back against the pillows. It was so frustrating to be in a situation like this. He wasn't sure how to respond to this at all. He could punish the guards, but in the end they could just take it out on Noctis. He could also inform Ardyn about what happened, but what the guards implied made him believe that nothing was going to be done. He was stuck, and for the first time in a long time, he truly didn't know what to do. He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, trying to figure out a solution.

The clock kept ticking and before he knew it an hour passed and Noctis was still in the bathroom. Ignis stood up and went to check on the prince, only to chuckle when Noctis sleeping face greeted him. At least one of them could find peace. Ignis carefully picked up the prince and dried him up with a new, clean towel. He carried Noctis over to the bed and went to get some clean clothes for him to sleep on. Noctis's eyes were flickering open now, his thick eyelashes hiding his eyes. He sluggishly helped Ignis get him dressed before dropping his head on the bed and falling asleep right after. Ignis fingers gently brushed Noctis's hair off of his face, and pulled the warm blankets over the sleeping prince.

Ignis didn't leave Noctis's bedroom that night, instead he slept on the couch and used one of the extra blankets and pillows.

  
  
  


Noctis wasn't left alone at night anymore. Ignis ended up making the prince's bedroom his new sleeping quarters. He still had his own room and would leave every morning to get ready for the day, but during the night he would sleep on the couch. Noctis seemed to enjoy that, in fact it wasn't that difficult to wake him up in the mornings anymore. He would also read his books out loud for Ignis, every night Noctis's fingers would dance over the pages and he would read the words out loud for him. He would read until he was too sleepy to keep going and he couldn't keep his eyes open anymore. Noctis would fall asleep with the book in his heads and Ignis would tuck him in and put the book away, but not before bookmarking the page they left on.

“You know...m-my...my bed is big enough. I mean...the couch is probably uncomfortable.” Noctis's words were rushed and a dark blush was crawling over his cheeks.

It was how Ignis ended up sharing a bed with Noctis. Even if he thought of it inappropriate, he couldn't deny the fact that sleeping on the couch was hurting his back. Noctis bed was a king size and the prince would end up curling up on a corner all by himself. It was safe to sleep with him and if Noctis was giving him permission, he wasn't going to bother the prince either.

Ignis was used to sharing a bed, when he was growing up with his cousins they would all sleep together. They kept each other company and made the nights so much better to get through. Later down the road Ignis ended up sharing a bed with other soldiers as well. When you have to sleep on the floor or share a bed, there was no fighting about whatever people slept together or not. You had to learn to get over the fact that you were going to have to share your living arrangements sometimes. Ignis was used to it.

Ignis was not used to a warm body pressing against his in the morning. He was not used to raven hair resting against his neck and the smell of citrus. Ignis was not used to this at all, but it became something normal. Noctis was never awake to see that at night he would end up curling up against Ignis. But Ignis would always wake up early in the morning to witness it. Noctis slim frame fit perfectly against his, and his face ended up on Ignis's chest. The prince's even breathing was relaxing and his soft noises stirred something insides Ignis. Yet, he found it hard to pull away from Noctis every morning. Quite frankly the prince's warm body clinging to Ignis's was well welcomed by him. Even if Ignis himself didn't want to admit it.

  
  


It had been four months now. Ignis couldn't believe how quickly time seemed to go by. He also couldn't believe how things changed so much. He never expected to be able to accomplish this job so well, even less he couldn't believe he was cooking new meals almost every single day. It had become a passion of his, one that he wasn't even aware of until now. Noctis was also easier to take care of, he wasn't as stubborn or rowdy anymore and went along with Ignis's schedule without any issues. He would talk to Ignis for hours and read him books non-stop. If anything what changed the most during the past four months was the prince. He looked alive.

Today however, didn't feel right. Ignis woke up with Noctis curling up against his side but something felt off. He left to take a shower and get dressed and the whole time he couldn't help the odd nagging feeling that was bothering him. It was the same type of feeling he would get in the battlefield when he was able to sense that something bad was going to happen. Like when you know a trap is waiting for you but you are not fully sure of where it is.

Ignis wasn't able to get rid of the odd feeling, even when he was cooking he was still trying to find an explanation. It was probably just his nerves playing tricks on him, specially because today there was a large festival in the city and the vast majority of the guards in the citadel were out of duty, and the ones that were on duty ended up being stationed near the festival. That was the most logical explanation, it made sense. Ignis pushed the odd feeling to the back of his head and finished making Noctis's breakfast.

The prince was already awake by the time Ignis brought his breakfast. He smiled at Ignis and got dressed in the bathroom. Noctis's outfit was different today, he opted for black capris and a black T-shirt, when usually he would wear nothing but night clothes or loose sweatpants. He was also wearing shoes, something else out of the ordinary but Ignis did not question it.

Noctis took his usual seat and ate his food slowly, enjoying every bite instead of devouring the food like he usually would. “It's better than ever, Ignis.” The prince smiled, but the smile wasn't reaching the clouded eyes. He looked off, as if something was wrong.

“Is there something wrong?” Ignis gently placed one of his hands on Noctis's shoulder and was surprised when the prince placed his own on top of his.

“No, not at all..I promise.” Noctis gave a firm nod and smiled at him one last time. He took one last bite of his meal and was finished.

The odd feeling was back, and Ignis wanted it to stop. He tried to ignore it again but instead got their things ready to head over to the small gym. Noctis was walking around the room, his hands gently touching the furniture before he sighed quietly and turned to join Ignis by the door.

“You know, I think you are the best.” Noctis chuckled and lightly shoved Ignis with his shoulder.

“Oh, you think so? Or is that the sugar from your breakfast speaking?” Ignis smirked and glanced over at Noctis.

“No, not at all...I...Thank you, for everything.” Noctis grinned this time and Ignis had to stop in his tracks. It was the first time Noctis had done this, and it was directed to him. The prince looked so happy, and in all honestly...he looked beautiful like that. Something was growing in his chest, but then that odd feeling was back, keeping the nice warmth from spreading across his chest.

“You are very welcome, Noctis.” Ignis smiled and the two kept walking down the hallway. The silenced that follow was comfortable and it gave Ignis room to think about what just happened. The warm feeling in his chest was growing bigger and bigger by the day, but he refused to admit what it was. He couldn't admit it. He had to push these feelings far away, at least until he could properly deal with them. He sighed quietly and looked over at Noctis, noticing that the prince stopped walking and was staring down at the floor.

“I'm sorry.” Noctis voice was nothing but a whisper.

Ignis turned around, a frown on his face. He wasn't sure what Noctis was talking about, there was nothing to be sorry for, or at least nothing yet. He was about to open his mouth to ask Noctis what was wrong when a fading blue light caught his eyes. Something around Noctis was glowing, and the prince reached for it and snatched it in his hand before he threw it as far as he could. Ignis tried to respond as quickly as he could but Noctis was already warping away from his grasp.

Ignis was never told that the prince could even use the Lucis's magic. What the hell was happening? Ignis hardly had the chance to answer his own question. He was quickly chasing after Noctis wondering what he was throwing to keep warping. It took Ignis a couple of seconds to notice what it was, but when he did he narrowed his eyes. Noctis was using kitchen knives to activate his warping abilities. He was quick as well, not wasting any second. It was unbelievable that this was the same person that refused to run in the treadmill for more than fifteen minutes.

Part of Ignis wanted to deny this. Deny the fact that Noctis was trying to run away from him, but the reality was different. Even with Noctis's disability he was moving through the hallways without any problems. He was quickly warping up the stairs and leaving Ignis behind. It didn't matter if Noctis out run him, the guards upstairs were going to stop him, there was no doubt about it. Yet, Ignis found himself running faster, trying to catch up with the prince.

Noctis hand touched the wall as he ran, the only time he would remove it was when he was throwing a knife in front of him to warp. He quickly touched the wall right away, easily recognizing the dents and scratches on the rough surface. He was close, he knew it. He could hear the guards just ahead of him. He could hear them reaching for their guns and moving and he could sense them. Noctis threw one of the knives in front of the guards and summoned another two as he did so. He warped and just for a second he was able to sense everything around him. For that one second he could see. He narrowed his eyes and used one of the knives to stab the guard's thigh and quickly used the second one to cut through his throat.

Noctis heard the second guard aiming his weapon at him and he quickly reacted by throwing one of his knives towards him and warping right away. The prince used the force of the momentum to kick the guard onto the floor and quickly stab one of the blades through his throat as well. The second set of stairs was now free. He had done it. The prince didn't have time to celebrate though, he could hear Ignis catching up to him and he quickly summoned the knives back to him before running. He had another two sets of guards to deal with. After that he could run towards the kitchen and leave through the kitchen door. The construction would be up ahead and he could blend in and hide then. The festival would be crowded and people would make it easy for him to hide. Even if he didn't know where to go after, as long as he was away from this god forsaken place he didn't care. As long as he could use the Lucis's magic he could feel enough to know where he was going. It was almost as if his ancestors were guiding him.

Noctis attacked the second set of guards in a similar manner, except this time he picked up the two fallen guns. The two weapons vanished in a bright light, becoming see-through at first before dematerializing. Noctis moved to the third set of stairs, but this time he summoned one of the guns and threw it towards the guards. He warped right away and cocked the gun upwards before shooting the guard right through his face. The gun was tossed towards the second guard and as Noctis warped he aimed towards the figure he was able to feel on his left. He shot the guard without remorse and vanished the weapons.

The last set of guards were in the main floor. Noctis was finally able to reach the first floor and he could feel the clean air around him. He could breath it in and it was pumping the blood rushing through his veins. He could feel his heart beat against his chest, and the sweet promise of freedom was all the motivation he needed.

The guards rushed when they noticed him. He could hear their foot steps and their voices. Noctis smirked and aimed for the guard on the left first. He warped with one of his knives and then summoned one of the guns to shoot him on the face. The second guard was unlocking his gun but before he could aim Noctis was warping in front of him and taking him down onto the floor. The prince summoned two knives and without hesitation stabbed the guard in between his ribs. He leaned in closer, his half lidded clouded eyes staring at nothing. He tilted his head towards the guard, the same smirk on his face.

“Don't worry, I'll make sure you enjoy this.” Noctis's hands twisted the blades inside the familiar guard before he yanked them out, splashing blood across the white marble floor. The prince tilted his head, listening to the noises of the guard choking on his own blood. The satisfaction setting in his body was numbing him and he needed to move again. He threw the knife towards the kitchen and warped right away. He was about to start running when a body collided with his and tackled him onto the floor. He recognized this shape, it was Ignis. How the hell was he able to catch up with him?

Noctis narrowed his eyes and summoned a knife, he threw it randomly, not knowing where he was at the moment thanks to Ignis. The familiar flash of blue let him know where he was and Noctis quickly ran through the main doors not knowing where he was going now. He warped one last time, and saw the hallway and large windows, but the hallway just kept going and going! This was bad, this was very bad. The prince was about to turn and run back, wanting to follow his original plan again. He wasn't even able to turn before Ignis was tackling him again, except this time he did it with enough force for the two to break through one of the windows. Noctis hissed loudly at the harsh impact, his body tensing up and his hands moving on their own. He warped and noticed he was in the courtyard. He was outside. He could feel rain falling on top of his head and it just felt so good.

“Noctis!”

Ignis voice was so close, he was so close to him but Noctis couldn't stop now. He heard the construction not too far and it made his plan still possible. He only needed to go that way. He could make it. He could finally go home. The prince threw one of his knives and warped, his feet feeling the cold and wet grass. It was the first time he had been able to be outside. It was the first time he was able to breath in the fresh air. In all of these years, he couldn't remember how the rain felt on his hair until now. Yet, he could feel Ignis right behind him. He could feel him reaching for him.

The sound of something piercing the air startled Noctis and forced Ignis to pull away from him. The prince wasn't able to register what was happening until an excruciating pain shot through his leg. Noctis fell on the ground right away, a loud scream ripping through his throat. He reached down to touch whatever had pierced through his calf. A large rod pierced through the flesh and was sticking out. Noctis could do nothing but to reach down and pull the damn thing out. He hissed loudly in pain, trying to fight off the second scream that was trying to escape him.

“Ah? Where are you going, dear prince.” Ardyn's was unmistakable. He lowered the large crossbow he was holding and reloaded it. He hummed quietly, his hand easily slipping in the second sharp rod in the channel. The chancellor smirked and moved towards the fallen prince, moving at a steady phase and like if there was no rush.

Noctis whimpered and slowly got on his knees. Ardyn was here, he was here and the panic building up in his stomach was making his brain shut down. He needed to think, he needed to move. He crawled and dug his fingers on the grass. He could heard footsteps and they were getting closer and closer. He needed to move, even if his leg was bleeding, even if the pain was tensing his muscles in a way that it was almost impossible to move. He needed to move. The prince summoned another knife and threw it. He warped and as soon as his body touched the ground a foot was slamming him down. Noctis hissed loudly in pain and tried to turn to stab the the bastard that was keeping him in place but a familiar chuckle had his eyes widening.

Ardyn gave the prince no time to react as he pointed the crossbow at him. He gave Noctis one last snicker before pulling the trigger. The rod shot out through the chamber right away and pierced through Noctis's shoulder, pinning him to the ground.

The prince felt his throat burning as he screamed for the second time. This time he was unable to move or reach for the piece of metal that was piercing through his shoulder. He was panting heavily, breathing through his nose and squeezing his eyes shut in pain. Everything was hurting, the pain on his legs and now his shoulder were making him shut down. He couldn't do anything but lay there. He tried to summon another knife, to try to warp away from Ardyn but a foot was stomping on his hand. He was done.

Ignis walked to stand next to the two, his eyes looking from Noctis to Ardyn. “Chancellor, I apologize. This is all my fault.” He bowed his head and sighed in resignation.

“Oh no, don't worry Ignis. You were just about to catch him yourself. I just decided he needed to learn his lesson more thoroughly.” As if to make his point Ardyn's foot pushed harder against Noctis's hand until the sound of snapping bones could be heard. “Someone that behaves like a rabid animal, should be treated as so.”

Noctis bit down on his bottom lip, his eyes narrowing with nothing but blood thirst. He pulled his hand free from underneath Ardyn and as he did so his other hand was summoning a knife. He aimed for the chancellor, his strike quick and ready to kill but a tight grip on his wrist intersected his strike. It was Ignis. Ignis was twisting his arm behind his back and pushing him against the floor with a knee on his back. He struggled and tried to fight it off, feeling a bitter taste in his mouth that he didn't even know what it was. Why did he feel like crying, why was his throat burning with anger. It was upsetting him more than the chancellor shooting him twice.

“Thank you, Ignis,” Ardyn's voice dragged the thank you and he stared directly at Noctis's eyes. He smirked, the victory evident in his voice. “Do not worry, I will be taking care of him for now. Please go back and check if any of the guards can be saved.”

Ignis hesitated for a second, he was looking up at Ardyn with a neutral expression on his face, but his body wasn't willing to move just yet. He forced himself to do what he as he is told, even if his hands linger over Noctis's body a bit longer. Both of Ignis's legs felt far too heavy, and he couldn't help himself but to look back as he walked away. Ardyn is pulling the damned rod from within Noctis's shoulder, looking as uncaring as always. He grabbed onto Noctis's good arm and forced him on his feet. The chancellor shrugged one of his shoulders, saying something that Ignis can't quite hear and then he started dragging Noctis away. The prince's right leg was not responding and he is forced to limb until he is flat out being dragged by Ardyn.

Ignis can't look back anymore. He forces himself to look ahead. The rain was pouring outside and water was getting in through the broken window. Ignis ended up calling for back-up and and medical help before quickly checking the guards in the first floor. One of them was for sure dead and Ignis could recognize him as the soldier that tortured Noctis not too long ago before Ignis ended up staying in the prince's room. Noctis had ripped his lungs open making him choke with his own blood. What a terrible death.

The rest of the guards didn't look any better. They were killed quickly and without hesitation, and every hit had been precised. Ignis didn't want to be impressed but he was and what made everything harder to take was the fact that this was all his fault. He realized this when he found one of the bloody knives on the floor. The cook wasn't a liar, he had been doing his job. It was Noctis the one that took all the knives before Ignis was able to see them. It happened weeks ago, before Ignis started cooking. Noctis had been planing to escape since then. In fact that was probably the only thing in the prince's mind every day and Ignis had been foolish for thinking otherwise.

  
  


Ignis was given a week off from his duties. He was told this wasn't a punishment at all, but he felt as if it was. He knew very well that his skills were probably being questioned right now, and maybe they were looking for a replacement. Ignis couldn't blame them, he got played by Noctis and there was no taking it back. He wanted to be angry, he wanted to be upset but all he could do was blame himself. It was his incompetent behavior that led to this. It was his fault that six guards died and Noctis nearly escaped. It made enjoying his week off almost impossible.

No one called Ignis while he was away, he wasn't sure if that was good or not but he enjoyed not being bothered. It wasn't until the day before he was allowed to return to the citadel that he got a short phone call from one of Ardyn's secretaries. He was told his duties were the same as always, but he needed to be more careful this time. He wasn't punished and he also wasn't told about his incompetence. It was almost as if what happened was nothing but a simple accident.

Ignis was back in Ardyn's wing and a new set of guards greeted him. The guards didn't seem to have any knowledge of what happened a week ago, if anything they looked happy for the promotion. Ignis could hear them talking among themselves, and was able to catch a few words as he moved through the hallways. The walls were now clean and no signs of blood could be seen, not like Ignis was expecting the hallways to look the same but it was odd. When he was in the front lines there was no cleaning crew, no one to hide what happened there, but now. Now it felt as something was being hidden, when in reality it was normal to clean up the remains of the dead. He also noticed something quite different. The walls now had wallpaper on them, and the doors were changed for new ones, the only thing that remained the same on the hallways was the floor.

The door for Noctis's room also changed. It looked heavier and thicker, but the same key could still be used. Ignis got his key out and unlocked the door. The familiar sound of gears forcing the door open felt somewhat relaxing. It was something that he was just used to by now. What greet him on the other side though, was something far from familiar. The room was completely different. The furniture, the decor and the layout were not even slightly the same. It also felt as if the room was bigger, but there was no way, or was there?

The room was still luxurious looking, there was no doubt about it, and the colors were kept the same. But the furniture was completely different, even Noctis's bed was a complete different shape. The room didn't feel familiar at all, and it was somewhat upsetting for Ignis, even if he didn't know why. He moved through the new layout and sighed in relief when he noticed the familiar figure underneath the blankets. At least that hadn't changed.

Ignis gently shook Noctis's shoulder. It was time for him to wake up, their schedule wasn't going to be affected by what happened. If Ignis let his emotions get the best of him, then he wasn't going to be competent enough to carry on his duty. A mistake was made and he wasn't going to let it happen again. Not now or ever. He gave Noctis's shoulder one last shake before the body underneath the blankets moved. Noctis weakly and slowly sat on the bed. The blankets now pooling around his waist and letting Ignis see his body.

Ignis eyes widened at the bandages around Noctis's chest and the cast on his right arm. The skin on his chest was bruised everywhere and his face didn't look any better. The skin wasn't swollen anymore, but still looked a bit rounder than it should. Noctis right eye was a nasty black color and he was hardly able to open it, but Ignis could see how red his eye was. It was a good thing the prince was already blind because a wound like this would had done the job for sure.

“It's time for breakfast.” Ignis nodded slowly and turned to leave. He was letting the cook prepare Noctis's breakfast today. He still needed to go shopping for the week and didn't feel like looking through the massive pantry in the kitchen just to make something quick.

The loud noise of someone falling had Ignis turning right away. He frowned and walked around the bed to see Noctis on the floor with his hands moving in front of him. The prince's eyes were wide and for the first time since he met him, he looked blind. Noctis was slowly and carefully moving his hands around him, trying to find support in front of him. He was able to touch the night table and used it to get on his feet but then was almost tripping over the new carpet near his bed. It was even more difficult for him to move with his wounded leg. He was limping and dragging his leg, his hands in front of him.

Noctis was lost. He was panicking and breathing heavily through his nose. The prince's wide eyes were giving away the fear he was trying to mask on his face. But it was evident...he didn't know where he was going. He didn't know where he was. He whimpered when he hit his wounded leg on a chair and then tried to balance himself but he couldn't reach for anything...because he didn't know where anything was. Noctis fell on the floor again. He didn't move for a couple of minutes and when he did the prince did nothing but to sit on the floor. He sat in between his legs, not being able to bend his leg because of the fresh wound. Noctis face was facing the floor. He wasn't looking up and little by little his shoulders started to shake.

Ignis could hear the soft whimpers coming from the prince. He could hear his trembling sobs and it was building up something inside of him. He could do nothing but to watch as Noctis started crying. The prince was hiding his face with both of his hands, his whole body trembling with his tears. Ignis fought the urge to reach out, to touch Noctis's shoulder and reassure him that everything was going to be okay. He fought those feelings because he shouldn't be having them to begin with. He needed to turn around and get out. He needed to. But he couldn't.

Noctis body was bending over and he rested his head on the floor, his bangs covering his face. The loud sobs were being muffled by the hands on his mouth, but before he could help it he was screaming. The prince tilted his head back, and screamed. The desperate filled noise ripping through his lungs and throat. He couldn't be quiet anymore and the loud sobs and whimpers couldn't be ignored anymore.

Noctis forced himself to stand up, his shaking legs dragging him as he hit and tripped over furniture. He screamed in frustration and his hands dragged everything onto the floor. He threw the chairs against the wall and his hands wiped off all the decorations on top of the furniture. Glass was shattering and Noctis didn't care if he was stepping on it. He kept going, rage and frustration filling his actions. He wanted to do more. He needed to do more. He kicked the cabinets and hissed in pure rage.

Ignis couldn't watch anymore. He moved faster than he ever had and before he knew it his arms were around the prince. He was holding Noctis by his waist and turning him around. He held the prince close to his body, pressing his chest against his and holding him around his shoulders. Noctis struggled at first. He pushed against Ignis and even pulled on his shirt until it was ripping. Until Ignis chest was scratched from the violent outburst. Still, little by little Noctis's body began to tremble again. He was crying against his chest, holding tightly onto his shirt as his legs slowly gave up on him and he keeled down on the floor. Noctis dragged Ignis along with him and he follow with no hesitation. Ignis kept his hold on Noctis. Not letting go even for a second.

The prince cried against his chest, he shook his head and soon enough he was hugging Ignis. He was holding tightly on his torso, with his face buried against his chest. He couldn't stop shaking and the tears in his eyes were clinging to his closed eyelashes. The quiet sobs coming from his trembling lips were quiet but still there. Ignis arms tightened around the prince's shoulders in return. He placed one of his hands on his head and gently ran his fingers through the thick locks of raven hair. He leaned his chin on top of Noctis's head, pulling him closer until he was sure their bodies couldn't press together any further. The way Noctis was clinging to him was desperate and it was causing something to twist in Ignis's gut. The tight feeling inside his chest couldn't be ignored, but he couldn't put it into words. Not yet.

Noctis's weak voice broke through his thoughts. The prince's voice was so hoarse and sore, it sounded like a whisper. “I-I'm...I-I don't know where I am...I-I don't know where this is. I-ignis...I-I can't see.” The heartbreaking sob that follow made Ignis hands tremble against Noctis's shoulders.

“I know, I'm sorry Noctis. I'm really sorry.” And Ignis couldn't help that his voice cracked as well.

  
  


 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's up people, hahaha how has it been for the last couple of hours since I uploaded a fic, except this time is an update? Good, awesome! 
> 
> Well here you go.
> 
> Warnings: My grammar and shit
> 
> Tumblr: https://demnocts.tumblr.com/ some and write noctis jizz to me, plz hahaha.

_The loud screams were echoing in his ears. People were running all around him, trying to get away from the fire that was slowly eating away the large garden. Noctis looked around him, his eyes blinking slowly and having a hard time focusing. He could feel the soft grass underneath his hands and he dug his fingers against the soil. He needed to get up. Something was wrong. The prince reached for the fallen wheel chair and tried to get back on it just for a pair of arms to hook underneath his armpits. Noctis panicked at first, he struggled until he looked back and saw the familiar face._

 

“ _Noctis!” Luna was dragging the boy across, not being strong enough to pick him up by herself. She kept her arms tightly around Noctis's chest, and looked around for a safe route. The fire was slowly taking over everything. and far in the distance she could see king Regis fighting enemies and trying to make his way across. She needed to get to him._

 

_Noctis was still weak from his recovery, but he managed to slowly turn and get on his feet. He held onto Luna's waist as the two walked carefully around the fire. The soldiers fighting around them were ignoring them, or maybe they hadn't been noticed yet. “W-where's dad?”_

 

“ _King Regis is up ahead, h-he is fighting.” Luna nodded and pulled Noctis behind some trees in an attempt to avoid the fallen corpses of soldiers._

 

“ _Fighting?” Noctis frowned and looked up at Luna. The smoke from the fire was dirtying her white clothes and she had smudges of blood on her face. “What's happening?”_

 

“ _I-I don't know...but we are being attacked, Noctis.” Luna rubbed her lips together, her eyes having a hard time seeing through the smoke, and breathing was becoming difficult._

 

“ _What?” Noctis looked around him. The smoke was bringing tears to his eyes but he couldn't look away. The unknowns soldiers were taking over everything. Why would they attack? Didn't they know the oracle and the oracle to be where here? What if they died, what if something happened to Luna's mother or Luna herself, their world would be doomed until a new oracle was born and raised. It would cause more harm than good. What was the point of all of this?_

 

_Even through the heat, Noctis' blood turned cold. He looked up at Luna, his lips trembling. “Is it because of us?”_

 

_Luna didn't answer, she only closed her eyes and pulled Noctis closer as they walked._

 

_The fight in the background was growing bigger, new units were arriving and Luna could see king Regis warping across the field. He was was looking for them. Luna took a deep breath and pulled Noctis closer before waving one of her arms. “King Regis!” She screamed and smiled when the king turned to face them. Luna's steps became faster then, she could see king Regis warping and running towards them, a relieved look on his face._

 

_The sound of grinding gears filled the space around them, and Luna hardly had time to jump out of the way before a large machine landed in front of them. She screamed and fell back, her hands letting go of Noctis. The large mech used one of it's large arms to push the king away, sending him flying back and forcing Regis to warp against a tree to avoid the landing. Luna stood up and looked around. Noctis was slowly and weakly getting to his feet, his legs trembling as he did so, but he was determined to move towards her again._

 

_Luna's eyes widened when she noticed soldiers running towards them. “Noctis! Behind!” She yelled and quickly rushed to the prince's side, but a hard slap across her face had her falling back against the grass. A strange man with scarlet hair was now standing in between her and the prince. He smiled at her and turned uncaring. Luna was forced to watch as he moved towards Noctis. The prince hardly had any time to react before an arm was around his waist. He was easily picked up and taken with little to no effort._

 

“ _No! Let him go!” Luna was on her feet faster than ever, she was running towards Noctis, trying to reach for him but a hand was pushing her away again. She was shoved onto the ground before a pair of amber eyes stared straight at her. A large hand held her jaw and the tight hold was painful._

 

“ _Don't worry little oracle. You'll have him back after I'm done with him.” Ardyn roughly let go of Luna's face and instead held tightly onto the struggling prince in his arms._

 

_Noctis was kicking and squirming against the tight hold. He was shaking his head and pushing against Ardyn, trying to get free. He looked over at Luna, and held back tears before looking around for his father. The MT and large mech were keeping him far from them, yet they were so close. He could see him, he could see the stress in his eyes as he tried to warp near them just for the large mech to quickly hit him again. Noctis shook his head, watching as his father fell on one of his knees with blood running down his face. “Dad!” Noctis screamed and began to struggle harder, but a hand quickly covered his mouth and the one holding his waist kept him in place._

 

_Ardyn looked around one last time and walked towards the wave of MT behind him. “Burn it.” The order caused the prince to shake his head and struggle even further. He was kicking his legs, looking back as the row of MT aimed the flame throwers in the direction of Luna and his father. He could only watch as Luna fearfully tried to step back. The MT aimed and fired. Noctis screamed loudly , tears clouding his vision but he was able to see his father warping just in time. King Regis picked up Luna and the two warped away just before the waves of fire took over what was left around them._

 

“ _Magnificent choice king of Lucis,” Ardyn mockingly said. He smiled at the two from the distance, the fire keeping them apart. He chuckled and then turned around to leave in the airship waiting for them._

 

_Noctis shook his head, looking around as the two boarded the airship. No, this wasn't right. It couldn't be right. He screamed once more, his hands trying to reach out for his father but it was too late. The fire couldn't let him see through and the doors of the ship closed behind him, turning everything dark._

 

 

Noctis blinked slowly, feeling tears running down the side of his face. He was waking up from what felt like such a long slumber. The dream was still fresh in his mind, but the colors looked faded and he could hardly remember the faces in there, with the exception of Ardyn's face. As much as he wished for him to be the one the prince could forget, there was no way that was going to happen, even after being blind for so long. He couldn't forget Ardyn's face. It was imprinted in his memory, like a scar that wouldn't fade away with time no matter what.

 

The sound of gears moving forced the prince to turn on his bed and bury his face against his pillow. He faked being asleep, and listened around him. The familiar footsteps walked around the soft carpet and the sound of a tray being placed on top of a table made him relax. Noctis turned on his bed again, his head hardly peeking from underneath the blankets.

 

“What's for breakfast?” Noctis mumbled quietly and moved to sit on the bed. He yawned, stretching his arms over his head before rubbing his eyes with the palm of his hand.

 

Ignis looked over at Noctis with a surprised look on his face, it was extremely rare for the prince to wake up on his own, even less when it was this early. He smiled nonetheless and walked over to the small radio on the night table. He flipped the switch on and looked over at Noctis. The prince was still trying to wake up and he was yawning with puffy eyes and a drowsy look.

 

It was odd how time always seemed to flow differently depending on the situation. Ignis could remember the days in the battlefield, sometimes twelve hours felt like a year and sometimes they felt like a minute. The flow of time was still an enigma to him, but right now he couldn't help himself but to chuckle quietly to himself. He couldn't believe two years had passed already. It had been two years since he was assigned to taking care of Noctis, and the motion finally crossed his mind as he looked down at the prince.

 

Noctis was changing, he was taller for sure and his body got rid of what was left of his baby fat. He was still young and a brat, that was for sure, but he wasn't just a child anymore. The prince's face was less around and his sharp jawline was visible now, his eyes were still the same though, as soft as ever, even when they weren't as big anymore. The bangs on his face were getting a bit too long and needed a trim but it wasn't like it bothered Noctis at all. The little bit of exercise he did with Ignis kept his body in shape, but there was hardly any solid muscle in his body. It was mostly due to the fact that Ignis wasn't allowed to give the prince a proper training regimen, they wanted him to stay weak, not grow stronger. Noctis had proven to be a handful as it was, training him more would just cause more issues.

 

It was not only the prince that was changing, Ignis felt that he was as well. Not only because he was getting older but because his life had changed and now it revolved around something completely different. Maybe peace was making him weaker. The capital was as peaceful as ever, even if the reality was other. The war was still happening and the Lucis kingdom was becoming ruthless. King Regis was becoming impatient and as the war dragged on it was pretty evident. He couldn't blame the man, how long had it been since the last time he saw his son?

 

The majority of the Niflheim territory had already been conquered. The capital and the territory just past the mountains was all that was left. It wouldn't be long before they lost everything and Ignis still couldn't understand what they were thinking. The emperor was still sending troops to fight, being stubborn and hateful at this point. He was sending his people to die, there hadn't been a victory on their side for a long time, even when Ignis was still fighting in the front lines, nothing ever looked good. The few missions he was a part of were always successful but that didn't win a war, it just bought them time.

 

Lucis now had Tenebrae as well, and Ravus left their side with that lost. Not only did the lose a strong commander but the sea border as well. The war came to them, something that was never expected to begin with, and all Niflheim had left was hope that summer never came. The cold weather was the last protection they had against the Lucis kingdom, but time was running short.

 

“Ignis?”

 

Noctis voice interrupted Ignis's thoughts. He shook his head and sighed quietly. The radio in the background was already talking about what to do during an attack and it only made everything feel even more real. “Apologies, I got lost in thoughts,” Ignis nodded and watched as Noctis turned his head towards the direction of the radio.

 

The prince frowned and reached over for Ignis. He held onto his arm, rubbing his lips together with a small frown. “Would you be okay?”

 

The question was unexpected but Ignis replied by giving Noctis's hand a gently squeeze. “Yes, I'll be fine, from the intel I had been able to get my hands on, it doesn't sound like the Lucis is doing more harm than what it is expected from war. They are keeping civilians unharmed and for that I am grateful.”

 

“Do you hate me? For what my father is doing?” Noctis's hand was trembling against his hold and Ignis shook his head, a light chuckle leaving his lips.

 

“No, of course not.” I don't think I'll ever be able to hate you, was left unsaid, but Ignis gently running his fingers through Noctis's hair was all the confirmation the prince needed.

 

“Well, I think we wasted enough time. I hope your breakfast is still warm.”

 

Noctis smiled and got off the bed. He walked over to the table and pulled the chair back to sit and eat his breakfast. Ignis watched him, his eyes following the way Noctis was limping as he moved. After the injury from the chancellor two years ago, the prince hadn't been able to regain his usual posture. It didn't affect him much, but it was still hard not to notice. It was a good thing that the prince by now knew his surroundings again. He would still struggle once in a while but it was mostly due to the limping.

 

After breakfast Ignis took the prince to the gym and ran along side him on one of the treadmills. Ignis picked up an exercise routine for himself, after realizing how long he had been out of combat or regular military training. Noctis as always was lazily running, not showing much interest or increasing his running speed. Ignis had to be the one to reach over and push the buttons until the prince was whining at him to stop. He didn't want to run a marathon, he just wanted to get the exercise over with!

 

“Don't make it faster!” Noctis huffed quietly and held onto the bar in front of him.

 

“Oh, I did that?” Ignis mused and ignored the glare Noctis was throwing his way.

 

“I hope you break your glasses, then you'll be blinder than me,” Noctis mumbled, his hand touching the menu in front of him until he was able to lower the speed again.

 

“I'm positive that can be argued. Even without my glasses, I would still keep my eyes on you.” Ignis chuckled and turned his attention back to the numbers on the treadmill. He missed the way Noctis looked away and hid his face with one of his hands. A light shade of red spreading through his cheeks.

 

After exercise came something that Ignis had been able to squeeze into their schedule not too long after Noctis tried to escape two years ago. The prince was a mess, depressed and with hardly any will to keep going, it had been a rough patch that Ignis still couldn't believe Noctis was able to push through, but it was probably because Ignis decided to teach the prince something new to distract himself with.

 

Ignis grew up in a military family, for sure, but he also grew up in a family that enjoyed expanding their horizons, and when he was a child he was taught how to play the violin. He decided to teach Noctis, as a way to distract him and allow him to express his feelings without the prince bursting into fits of rage from feeling so powerless. The lessons were slow, and it took Noctis a few months to get the basics, especially since Ignis also had to learn how to teach someone that couldn't see what he was trying to explain. It eventually ended up with Ignis showing Noctis how to play the violin by leading him the whole time.

 

At times, Ignis couldn't help himself but to wonder if Noctis was toying with him, because he knew for sure what the prince could play and couldn't play by now. Yet, Noctis would make mistakes here and there, just like he was doing right now.

 

“Can you show me?” Ignis was asked with a timid voice. Noctis would avoid facing him, his hands holding his instrument as he waited for Ignis to move close to him.

 

Ignis would gently reached over and move Noctis' fingers along the strings, reminding him which ones he needed to use. He would gently hold the hand gripping the stick and make it move along the strings. Ignis always picked to stand behind Noctis, finding it easier to show the prince how to properly play like this. Noctis was easy to teach though, his body was always relaxed and he would follow along with what Ignis did. Yet, not long after the first mistake another one came, and Noctis was looking at him. A coy smile on his lips.

 

Sometimes the lessons had to be cut short.

 

Noctis favorite thing to do was still the same, listening to the radio, and as of late he looked more excited when he did. The news of the Lucis kingdom were of course something the prince couldn't help himself but to be thrilled about. Ignis could understand this, even if he also felt dread from the news. The tensing was spreading through the citadel. Everyone looked on edge and Ignis made sure to avoid taking Noctis anywhere near the guards. He didn't want any kind of incidents to happen.

 

“I want to see dad.” Noctis voice was quiet as he leaned his head against one of the pillows. He turned his head towards Ignis, a small smile on his lips.

 

“I'm sure he wants nothing else either.” Ignis replied with a small nod, his eyes on the book he was holding. He heard the prince standing up, but didn't look up until Noctis sat next to him with his head leaning against Ignis' shoulder.

 

Noctis buried his face against him, and held tightly onto Ignis's arm with a soft noise. “I don't want anything bad to happen to you.”

 

“I'll be fine, I promise.” Ignis nodded slowly, and ignored the feeling that was building up in his stomach. He wasn't naive, he knew exactly what the prince had been doing as of late, but Ignis could only reply by acting like he didn't notice. The feelings tightening his chest had to be kept under lock, and he wasn't going to allow for anything to slip through.

 

Noctis quickly pulled away from him when someone came through the door. A royal guard stood there, and saluted Ignis with a firm nod. “The chancellor is asking for your presence,” The guard bowed his head and then turned to leave.

 

Ignis looked over at Noctis and the prince waved him off with a lazy sigh. “I'll head back to my room, don't worry.”

 

Ignis raised a brow but didn't move, instead he crossed his arms over his chest.

 

Noctis sighed loudly and then did the same. He crossed his arms over his chest and stood up. “See? I'm moving, you stick in the mud,” The prince mumbled and walked past Ignis to head to his room. Ignis didn't leave until he saw Noctis going back inside his room and heard the gears locking themselves shut.

 

Ignis was hardly ever summoned by Ardyn. The chancellor had a very busy schedule and only required for Ignis to give him a written report every month. He would go over it with Ignis but the meeting usually wouldn't last longer than thirty minutes. If anything the chancellor would spend more time with Noctis whenever the prince was taken to the laboratory within the citadel. And sometimes he would dismiss Ignis just to have some alone time with Noctis. By the end of his visits Noctis always looked drained and his skin was extremely pale. He wasn't sure what Ardyn was doing, but Noctis refused to talk about it.

 

Ardyn's office was located in the opposite wing. It was a large room filled with old books that looked ready to fall apart. The office was messy but interesting in it's own unique ways, because of all the ancient items Ardyn kept around him. The place always had a very unique smell to it, not just because of the smell of books but something else that Ignis couldn't quite put his finger on. On top of that Ardyn always had quiet music playing in the background, music that Ignis have never heard before.

 

This time though, it was different. Ignis frowned when he didn't hear music near the office but instead a loud voice screaming through what he could only guess was the speaker phone.

 

“They are closing in on our borders, that bastard Regis doesn't care anymore!” It was the voice of the emperor, Ignis was sure of it.

 

“Yes, but we have been able to hold this long thanks to him. If we do what you want, the key to weakening the Lucis magic might be gone for good.” Ardyn's voice came next and Ignis found himself slowly and quietly moving towards the door.

 

“We have held him this long! And no progress has been made, we cannot do anything without the crystal and at this point we cannot take it. We are losing chancellor. The MT are not being made fast enough to fight the army of Lucis. Not anymore. The gods have forsaken us.”

 

“You are not thinking. Please, you have to understand, the Lucis kingdom will fall but if you do what you are plotting, everything we worked for will be in vain.”

 

“The kingdom falling be damned. I don't care about this anymore. I want to see Regis twisting in agony before my city falls. I want to see him lose. I'll have the head of his son delivered to him before feeding the deamons what is left of his body. I want him to see his son suffer before we end him. I'll take any victory I can chancellor. This is my decision.”

 

The long silence that followed was thick enough that Ignis was able to feel it. He was even afraid his own breathing could be heard.

 

“Very well. I'll make it so, anything else?”

 

“Butcher his face, I don't want Regis having the satisfaction of even seeing him again.”

 

The line went dead after that. Ignis quietly moved down the hallway and waited a couple of minutes before his regular steps echoed through the hallway. He composed himself, acting as if he hadn't just heard their conversation even if his heart was beating against his chest and his hands were moist with sweat underneath his gloves. He knocked on the door once and waited.

 

“Come in,” Ardyn's voice was as cheerful as ever. He smiled at Ignis and stopped him from giving a formal salute. “No need Ignis, I think you have been here long enough to feel the need to do this.”

 

Ignis just nodded slowly and stood in front of Ardyn's desk, ignoring the amused look the chancellor was giving him. “You wanted to see me, chancellor?”

 

“Ah, yes. I got good news for you!” Ardyn stood up and pushed a piece of paper towards the other side of his desk.

 

Ignis frowned and picked up the page. He read over it, his eyes moving over the sentences as fast as he could before he shook his head and looked over at Ardyn with a confused look on his face. “Relocation?”

 

“That's right, you are being moved to the front lines again. Unfortunately I do not have the luxury to keep someone like you around anymore, especially for a babysitting job. We need trained men with a very specific set of skills to keep the Lucis kingdom from pushing our borders even further. You happen to be one of them. You'll be leaving in two days, I suggest you pack lightly.” Ardyn shrugged one of his shoulders, not looking at all bothered that he was going to be losing the person that had been taking care of his prisoner this whole time.

 

Ignis on the other hand didn't know what to say, or even do. He couldn't think clearly because all that he could think of was the conversation he heard not even a few minutes ago. He wasn't being relocated because he was needed. He was being relocated because soon enough, there was not going to be a prince for him to take care of.

 

For the first time in many years, Ignis felt rage within his blood.

 

 

 

 

Noctis moved his fingers over the book on his lap. He was trying to read what was in front of him but his mind kept drifting off. It started happening only a couple of months ago, or maybe it had been happening for a long time now. But he couldn't stop thinking about Ignis, even now that he was only gone for a little bit, he couldn't stop thinking about what he was doing.

 

It was funny though, because he could remember how much he hated Ignis at some point. He could remember the hatred and rage he felt towards him after his escape attempted was stopped by him. He could remember damning his name over and over as a whip cracked across his back just the day after he tried to escape. He could remember his voice leaving him from screaming so much, until his consciousness was hardly there and he was at the edge of passing out. He blamed Ignis for all of this. It was his fault for stopping him, it was his fault for letting Ardyn capture him again.

 

It was all Ignis fault.

 

At least that's what the prince told himself as he was punished and tortured. As he was hurt and he felt pain spreading through his body. He hated everything and everyone. He wanted this country to burn and to disappear, for his father to set it a blaze. But then, after he was taken to his room again, after he was blinded again. Ignis had been there. He hugged him, he calmed him. He stayed with him and kept him safe. He helped him through everything, and not once did he ever harmed him.

 

Noctis wanted to hate him like he had before. He wanted to feel the same rage as he felt, but he couldn't. The madness would melt away every time he felt Ignis' gloved hands touching his face. He couldn't be upset as Ignis kept him safe from the guards and moved some of his things in his room to make sure Noctis was never left alone. He couldn't bring himself to despite him when Ignis started to teach him how to play the violin.

 

If anything, the more he tried to hate him, the more he became attached to him. In this world that was dark to him, in a world in which he was nothing but a tool. He was glad that someone was at least able to see him.

 

The prince tilted his head up when the gears of the door moving and he heard rushed foot steps. He frowned, not recognizing them right away and quickly moved back when a pair of hands reached for him.

 

“Noct, it's me.” Ignis' voice cut through the silence.

 

Noctis allowed himself to relax and he closed his eyes. Ignis' hands were holding his face. He couldn't remember ever hearing Ignis' steps like this, they were harsh and loud, almost like a stomp and he was moving so fast it was hard for Noctis to recognize the noises he was making.

 

“Sorry, your footsteps...they were off, I couldn't recognize them,” Noctis nodded slowly and closed the book on his lap. He frowned, Ignis' hands were shaking against his face. He could feel his fingers twitching and his body trembling. He could almost feel his fast heartbeat through his fingertips, even through the leather. What was happening? He tilted his head, furrowing his brows before placing one of his hands on top of Ignis'. “What's wrong?”

 

The hesitation was clear in the air and Noctis held onto Ignis' hands, waiting for him to speak.

 

“I'm bring transferred, Noctis. I'm going to the front lines again.” Ignis sighed quietly and his blood turned cold when Noctis' hand let go of his own. The prince was frowning, shaking his head.

 

“T-transferring? But why? W-who? What's going to happen?” Noctis shook his head, running his fingers through his hair as anxiety quickly began to consume him. Ignis was leaving? If he was leaving then who was going to take care of him? Was it going to be like it used to be? With the servants doing as they pleased, with the cook throwing his food on the floor and with the guards pulling him out his room and...and...no, this wasn't happening.

 

“Noctis, stop. You are going to hurt yourself.” Ignis stopped the prince from pulling on his hair, although he was sure that Noctis wasn't even aware of what he was doing it at the moment.

 

“Why?! Why are you leaving?” Noctis' voice cracked and he shook his head. He ignore how his body was shaking and instead buried his face against his hands.

 

“Because...they are going to kill you.”

 

The words felt like bricks that were being dropped on top of the prince. He couldn't hide his surprise. Noctis' clouded eyes were wide, and his blood turned cold. Did he heard it right? Was he sure of what Ignis said...he was going to die. They were going to kill him. After so many years, after going through so much, he was going to be discarded like trash. He was going to be killed by the people he hated.

 

Noctis stood up, his body moving weakly as he tried to process what he had just been told. Death was something he had always known. It was part of the Lucis kingdom, it was part of his bloodline, but this was different. He wasn't going to die while protecting his kingdom, like his father was willing to do. He wasn't going to die from using the power of the crystal, no. He was going to die by Niflheim's hands. The same people that took him from his father, the same people that locked him up, and the same people that blinded him. He was going to die in the hands of the people that tortured him and raped him. The people that destroyed the future his father had spoke about so many years ago.

 

He didn't want to die.

 

Noctis didn't want to die at all. He didn't want to be killed.

 

“The day after I was taken...”

 

Ignis looked up. He was staring at Noctis back as he spoke, watching his shoulders tremble, just like they did two years ago when he broke down in front of him.

 

“Ardyn brought me here. He looked me in the eye and said he was going to be the last person I was ever going to see, and then I couldn't see anymore. He said he hated my eyes, they reminded him of someone he would rather not see again. I wasn't blinded because I was trying to escape. He did it because he wanted to. He did it because he enjoyed it,” Noctis voice was cracking and his fists were shaking on either side of him. “I wasn't beaten because I was bad. I wasn't starved because I didn't want to eat. I wasn't raped because I wanted it. None of it happened because of me! And I don't want to die. I don't want to die here! I don't want to die at all! I don't want to, I never want to!” He was screaming now. Noctis was shaking his head, his body weakly leaning against the couch next to him.

 

“I-ignis...I don't want to die.” A broken sob came next.

 

Ignis quickly moved and held onto the prince before Noctis collapsed on his knees. He held his face and leaned his forehead against the prince's. Noctis was gripping his shirt, tears rolling down his eyes as he tried to look in his direction.

 

“I don't want to die, I don't. I-I don't want to die and if I do, please. I don't want to die here,” Noctis didn't even want to think of what they would do before killing him. “Please, not here.”

 

The prince leaned his head on top of Ignis' shoulder, he buried his face against there and gripped his shirt as tightly as he could. He was going to die all alone, Ignis was going to leave. He was going to go and fight against his kingdom and he was probably going to die. Noctis was going to be all alone during the last few days of his life, and he was going to be alone before he died.

 

“Ignis, p-please,” Noctis whimpered quietly, a small sob leaving his lips. He tilted his head towards Ignis, his body moving on it's own. He couldn't stop himself then, his trembling lips were moving closer and before he knew it he was kissing Ignis. It was an odd feeling, tasting his tears along with Ignis' lips, but it also felt right. He was moving closer, his hands resting on Ignis' shoulders as he gained a bit of confidence to press further against him.

 

The warmth that spread through Noctis' body when Ignis kissed back was the only thing that kept his tears from falling again. The twitchy, sad smile on his lips was uplifting, even if he couldn't bring himself to express the joy that was being overshadowed by his own fears. He let Ignis take command of the kiss, and leaned in against him when his arms moved around his waist and pulled him closer. The feeling of Ignis' leather gloves against his face was always so comforting, even when fear was still making his body tremble.

 

The kiss lasted only a few seconds, but it felt as if the world around them stopped for much longer. Ignis stared at the prince in front of him. There was a blush on Noctis' cheeks and the now moist lips were smiling, but the smile couldn't reach his eyes. It couldn't heal him and make him forget about what was going to happen to him. None of it could...but Ignis. He could do something.

 

“You are not going to die. I promise.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk like, I suck at writing romance guys. BUT I'M TRYING! Like seriously trying.

**Author's Note:**

> Well, there's that!


End file.
